


Know Better

by andquitefrankly



Category: Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: M/M, Meet-Cute, finn shouldn't drink, it's okay cause poe thinks he's cute anyway, senator finn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-30
Updated: 2016-06-30
Packaged: 2018-07-19 06:19:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,552
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7348549
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/andquitefrankly/pseuds/andquitefrankly
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Finn hated those fancy parties where all the senators got together and rubbed elbows but at least there's alchohol. Lots and lots of alchohol. </p><p>Or Finn is a senator, he gets drunk, and meets Poe.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Know Better

**Author's Note:**

  * For [EverythingandAnything](https://archiveofourown.org/users/EverythingandAnything/gifts).



> I tried to make this as close to the song "helpless" from Hamilton as I could. It was hard. But hey, I tried. I hope you enjoy!! :)

Finn supposed he ought to know better.

Try as he might, it was near impossible to keep the First Order out of Imvur. There were too many First Order sympathizers, too many old supporters of the Empire, hoping to boot the royal family off the throne.

Imvur was strong once, under the Empire rule, they had argued far too many times for Finn to count. He had gladly accepted the position as Senator, but kriffing hell, he wanted nothing more than to put all sympathizers on a ship and send it off in space, never to be found again.

It would definitely make his life so much easier.

“Don’t let it get to you,” Rey, the senator from Jakku, told him, patting his back.

She had it worse than him, Finn knew. Jakku was crawling with sleemos, and its affiliation with the Empire was well known throughout the galaxy. How Rey managed to become Senator was a mystery to Finn. Then again, she was one tough lady. It wouldn’t surprise Finn if she had gotten rid of the competition, so to speak.

Then again, maybe no one else felt like putting in their own two credits. Jakku wasn’t exactly known for their politics.

“I won’t,” Finn whispered, standing stiffly at the back of the ballroom where his fellow colleagues were dancing, their robes and dresses shining softly under the lights. “I just think that I should do something about it.”

Rey rolled her eyes, gladly taking a flute of Darruvian champagne from a passing waiter and downing the alcohol in one gulp, head thrown back. She grinned at Finn as she put the set down the glass. “You should just kick them out,” Rey said. “Gather them all up and – poof! – gone.”

“That’s illegal,” Finn mumbled, pulling at his deep violet jacket, feeling like the buttons were digging into his neck. He hated formal parties, feeling as if he had something greater to contribute to the Senate that didn’t include him getting horribly drunk in front of his peers.

He always felt uncomfortable in the suits they gave him, his shoulders too wide for the jacket, his feet too big for the shiny boots. He felt more like an intruder into this shiny, glittery world.

He was certain Rey felt the same way, but she looked like an Angel, in her flowy, sand robes. She was a picture of beauty while Finn was the awkward kid who tried his best not to step on anyone’s toes when they asked him to dance.

The night was slowly becoming day and Finn was feeling pleasantly drunk, any thoughts of bettering his planet gone with his last cup of fox beer, deciding that no matter what anyone said, it didn’t taste all that bad.

“You have no taste buds,” Rey commented.

He had said that out loud. Okay.

“That’s it,” Rey said, taking the empty glass from Finn’s hand. “I think you’ve had enough.”

She was probably right, and if the head nods she was giving him was any indication, he saying all of his thoughts out loud. This is why he didn’t drink. Lowered his inhibitions. Inside thoughts became outside thoughts and then his whole head would feel fuzzy and everything got all – Whoosh!

He wondered if anyone else felt like their heads were going to topple off their bodies. “I’m going to get some water,” Finn slurred, stumbling towards the refreshment table. What kind of senator was he, getting completely drunk at a dinner party, as if he didn’t have to schmooze his fellow senators.

“Woah, buddy, careful,” someone said, holding Finn’s elbow, stopping him from tripping over a white and orange astromech droid, who was beeping irately at him.

Finn could only blink at the droid. He was accustomed to seeing protocol droids at these parties, the number was infinite, but mech droids were hard to come by. How did the thing even get in without an invitation?

“Technically BB-8’s with me, and it ain’t exactly against the rules so…”

Right. The inside thoughts becoming outside thoughts. He really needed that water right about now.

“I got it.”

Finn remembered the hand on his arm. Someone was there. Someone was talking to him. It wasn’t just some random voice from the ether.

“Nope, actual person,” the voice – person – replied. “Poe Dameron, at your service senator.”

Finn looked up at Poe, his vision blurring the image slightly, but it didn’t blur his attractiveness. Oh Force, he was way too drunk for this. “How’d you know I was a senator?” Finn asked dumbly, grabbing the offered glass of water and downing it one gulp.

It didn’t clear his head completely, but it was definitely a step in the right direction.

Poe grinned, his perfectly brown skin glowing golden under the party lights, his pink oh-so-kissable lips caught under his pearly white teeth. “Anyone who’s not in a uniform here is a senator,” Poe whispered, leaning forward conspiratorially, motioning to his own uniform.

Finn nodded, only barely comprehending that he was talking to a Resistance fighter. Officer. Guy.

“Commander, actually,” Poe said, leading Finn towards and empty chair. “Are you alright?”

No – no he was not alright. Finn was going to get horribly drunk, pass out, and go back to work the next day and pretend like he had some semblance of social life. Instead he’s in the clutches of the most attractive man in the galaxy and he’s too damn drunk to make conversation. “If Telo saw me talking to you, he’d try to kick me out of the senate,” Finn mumbled. “Again.”

“Who’s Telo?” Poe asked, sending BB-8 for more water.

Finn closed his eyes and scrunched up his face in thought. He had no idea who Telo was. Why were they talking about him again? He opened his eyes and saw the old, craggly bastard attempting to dance. Finn pointed at him. “He hates me,” Finn explained. “And I think his son is a member of the First Order.”

“Yikes,” Poe replied. “That’s rough, buddy.”

Buddy, buddy. Who even said buddy nowadays? But it was rough. Very rough. “It’s the worst.”

Poe threw his head back and laughed, clearing Finn’s head all the more. If he died tonight, Finn would think it was worth it just to be in the presence of this man. Another glass of water was put into Finn’s hand and Finn obediently drank it, wanting to actually use his wits to make Poe laugh, not just dumb drunken responses.

“I’m Finn,” Finn said with a grin, deciding he was sober enough to introduce himself. “You’re really attractive.”

Nooo that’s not what he wanted to say at all! Abort, abort, someone kill him right now.

“Thanks,” Poe chuckled. “You’re no rathtar yourself.”

“I hate those things,” Finn mumbled. “They’re all – ” he opened his mouth to bare his teeth and put his hand in front, wiggling his fingers. “The worst.”

“You have lots of experience with rathtars?” Poe asked.

“Nope,” Finn said, popping the ‘p’. “They just ate my parents when I was six.”

Poe blinked, BB-8 beeping in concern beside him. “What?”

Finn giggled, shaking his head. “You actually believed me!” He doubled over in laughter, clutching his stomach. He suddenly stopped laughing and Poe watched him in concern. That was not normal.

“Uh… Finn?” Poe asked, poking Finn in the side. “Finn?” BB-8 chirped as well, prodding Finn’s leg with its little metal arm. The only response they got as a loud snore.

* * *

His head was pounding, his mouth was dry, and Finn was pretty sure that he was dead, because if his alive version had to deal with this, he’d kill himself. This is why he didn’t drink. This was why he didn’t go to parties.

A loud whirring sound trilled in his ear and Finn swatted it away, only to be dealt an electric shock in return. Finn bolted upright, his head protesting the change in position.

“Woah! BB-8 stop, get away.”

Finn turned towards the voice, opening his eyes slowly to be greeted with beautiful darkness. At least that was one point in his favor. “Water,” he croaked.

A glass was pressed into his hands and Finn gulped it down, the lights slowly turning on. “More?”

Finn shook his head, handing over the glass to rub at his heavy eyelids. “Where am I?”

“Before you panic, I did get your permission, if you remember me at all, but you’re in my room,” Poe explained. “Because you wouldn’t tell me where you were staying and I couldn’t leave you asleep in that chair.”

Finn took in his surroundings – the small bunk, the white walls – cheap hotel then. He looked at Poe, memories hitting him like a speeding X-wing. “Kriff,” Finn cursed. “I totally came onto you last night didn’t I?”

Poe chuckled. “Not as much as you seem to think. Not that I’m opposed to it.”

“Really?”

“Finn, you are so unbelievably hot, I had been trying to talk to you all evening,” Poe admitted. “And then you just got stuck with me.”

“Oh.”

“Oh?”

Finn grinned. If any of those First Order sympathizers found out he really, really wanted to kiss a Commander in the Resistance they’d definitely try to boot him out of the senate.

Finn guessed he really didn’t know better after all.

 


End file.
